origins of psychology Flashcards
(11 cards)
What is introspection?
The systematic analysis of your conscious experience of a stimulus.
Introspection involves observing and reporting on one’s own thoughts and feelings in response to stimuli.
Who is known as the ‘father of psychology’?
Wilhelm Wundt
Wundt opened the first psychological laboratory in 1879 at the University of Leipzig.
What was the main aim of Wundt’s research?
To study the nature of human consciousness.
This includes awareness of thoughts, memories, feelings, and sensations.
What technique did Wundt develop for his research?
Introspection
He trained students to observe and report their experiences in response to stimuli.
How did Wundt categorize observations made by participants?
Into three categories: thoughts, images, and sensations.
This categorization was part of his structuralist approach.
What is structuralism in psychology?
wundt gave all students same instructions and ensured they all expirenced the same stimuli in the same way
What is the difference between objective and subjective study in psychology?
Objective study is systematic and unbiased, while subjective study is influenced by personal judgment.
Psychology has evolved to favor objective methods to establish general laws.
strength of wundts contribution to psychology (paved way)
it paved the way for modern psychology - gave other psychologists a scientific way of studying the mind
limitation of wundts contribution to psychology (unscientific)
self report - subjective
strength of the emergence of psychology as a science (scientific)
behaviourist, cognitive, biological approach all investigate theories in controlled objective way
limitation of the emergence of psychology as a science (humanistic)
not all approaches use scientific methods - humanistic -individual experience
